Vampiric Pasts
by MedNar
Summary: ON HOLD as of 12-20! PG cause of vampirism. Really!- Wait-what's this? Hermione's a vampire, in the past teaching Potions during the Marauder's 7th year, and everyone in her real time doesn't mind? And what does St. Mungos have to do with all of this?
1. Chapter 1: Vampire Prologue

A/N: Hah! See? I'm finally putting up a chaptered story! Ok—this is just to see how people like the idea. I have a little bit of a plot (not much) and I work on several stories at once (depending on how people like this, I might put up 1 chapter of the others and see the response), so don't expect updates too often. I will, however, try to get one out at least twice a month, if I can. I hope. 

I didn't have a beta on this—but thanks Tara, for helping me with the spellings of HP words when my mind blanked!! (I have gone through it several times and checked it—hopefully I got most of the mistakes!)

I do NOT have a pairing idea for this!! It's obviously Hermione/someone, but I don't know who, or if I should even have a pairing. Help, please! Tell me what you want! (as long as it's not fem slash.) (I was thinking maybe Hermione/Severus; maybe you'll see why in the story.)

Anyway, I hope you like! I have several stories like this and I want to see a response to one, and this was the one I had open. 

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harry Potter. Would I be writing fanfiction if I did? Let's think about this. iWhy think? They should know./i bWho needs your opinion? Shut up and let real people think./b Raina, Kazel, be nice, please. (see my bio if confused.) It's the first story some of them have probably read; not nice to be mean.

Now READ!!! *points down*

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Hermione Granger stood in front of Headmaster Dumbledore's desk, cinnamon-brown eyes watching him seriously. The 21 year old had gotten her hair cut short to her shoulders, which tamed it somewhat and made it easier to manage. It had been streaked with a dark red among the wavy brown. Deathly pale skin made a sharp contrast to her black robes and dark boots. Lying on the desk of the Headmaster was a long, thin knife. The blade was made of steel that rippled with blue, nearly screaming good craftsmanship. The handle was carved out of silver in the shape of a dragon that curled around itself.

Dumbledore sat in his chair, watching the woman who, during her years at Hogwarts, was his brightest student. He gestured to the seat next to her, which she took with an easy grace. "Sir?"

Dumbledore smiled. "How many times must I tell you to call me Albus, Hermione?"   
  


"At least once more, sir." (An almost PotC quote! *grin*) With a shake of his head, Albus spoke again. "I suppose you already know why I called you here?" 

A slight grin crossed her face. The grin revealed pearly white teeth and sharp canines. "Yes sir. You want me to go into the past to the time of James Potter's 7th year and teach Potions."

The old man laughed softly. "Yes, that's correct. How did you figure it out this time? I thought I'd kept it secret."

A slow smile tugged at her lips. "Remus told me. Said he remembered someone called Professor Dylia Slypern teaching Potions. The name sounds like something I would choose. My cat's name, when I was 5, was Dylia. As a Potions teacher, I would need to seem somewhat Slytherin-like, at least in my perspective. Pern is one of my favorite Muggle series books, therefore, Slypern works wonderfully."

Albus smiled and nodded, pulling out a small black box. He handed it to Hermione and looked at her expectantly. She sighed softly and spoke. "My name is Dylia Slypern. I took lessons at Durmstrang, but my parents were English and as soon as my classes were done, we returned here to England. I've been learning Potions for much of my after-school life, and just recently achieved the level of Potions Mistress. I heard you were in need of a Potions teacher, and thought I'd try for the job."

With a slight nod, the Headmaster picked up the dagger from his desk and handed it to her, blade first. She reached out with her left hand and pricked her palm, drawing a thin line of blood. She hardly winced, turning the knife slowly in her hands, and grimaced. "Do I have to?" "I'm sorry Hermione, but it's needed. I know you hate it, and I wish there was another way, but we can't risk it." 

With a sigh, Hermione tucked the blade into a holder on her arm. She stood, felt in her pocket for the shrunken trunk with her belongings, and raised her left hand in an ironic salute to Dumbledore. The unmarred flesh gleamed eerily as the vampire disappeared in a flash of light from the small black box.

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Dumbledore gazed at the place where Hermione had stood just a few moments before, then stood with a faint sigh and looked over at one wall. Harry Potter slid the Invisibility Cloak off, also looking at the place where the vampire had been. "Somehow I knew she'd go without question." The Boy-Who-Lived, now 21, looked down at his hands wearily. Dumbledore raised one hand and rested it on the man's shoulder.

"The war changed all of us Harry. Some in more ways then the public wants to believe."  
  
The black haired man snorted angrily. "Of course. Why would the public want to believe they're 'Golden Trio' has been 'mutated'? Hermione Granger, bookworm extraordinaire, now Hermione Granger, vampire. Ronald Weasley, chess player and 'sidekick', now Ronald Weasley, isolated in St. Mungos. And of course, who can forget Harry Potter, the bloody Boy-Who-Lived-and-defeated-He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named-at-age-19, now Harry Potter, werewolf."

Albus sighed, shaking his head slightly. "It's not fair; I know that. But if they want to keep the images of you three that they have, nothing we say will change that. For now, we just have to put up with it." He hesitated, then spoke again. "I think we need the rest of the crew. I plan to send someone in a few days, once classes have been going, to check up on Hermione and see if she needs anything via Time Turner."

Tired emerald-colored eyes looked up at the man's mentor, then Harry nodded slightly and stood. He walked over, laid a hand on Fawkes, and sent a message to Draco. The blond man's head appeared in the fire a few seconds later and scowled 'angrily' at his Hogwarts rival. "It had better be important Harry, I was entertaining."

 "By how? Telling them how we kept beating you in everything in school? Hermione's gone back in time to be the Hogwarts Potion teacher in the 7th year of our Marauder friends and Severus. Albus wants to send someone back to check on her every so often, and we need to set up a schedule of who goes when."

Draco hesitated a moment, then sighed. "Alright. I'll get the others. Lucky for you, I was only entertaining Severus. At least it wasn't the Minister of Magic this time." With a laugh, Harry stood up and Draco's head disappeared from the fire. With a nod to each other, Dumbledore and Harry took seats and waited for the others to arrive.

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A/N: Yay!! First chapter is up!! Review and tell me what you thought, PLEASE!! Even if you hated it, or if you loved it, or if you want to tell me how stupid an author I am and that I should never write fanfiction again (I won't listen to you, but hey, it's your opinion), or if you saw a mistake and feel the need to point it out to me… I DON'T CARE WHAT! Just tell me, k? I'll be your friend forever, and I'll give you a butterbeer. *waves butterbeer tantalizingly close to reviewer's nose*

~mednar~


	2. Chapter 2: The Arrival

A/N: mwahahahaaaa! I was good and decided to select the next chapter from the total of 17 pages I have. This one's 3 pages long without Author Notes. I'm sorry it's taking so long-I have NO CLUE AT ALL where this story is going, so it's going slowly. I'm also writing up a plot for another story (Damon's Challenge, look up Damon Rhodes and look at #3 in Deletion's Creations), so I'm working on that as well. When I start writing the actual story for that, VP might go on hold for a bit until I get the challenge all up.  
  
I'm working on the next part of the story while I write this, but I can't promise how soon the next chapter will come up. I think I'd said something like I'd try to post at least once every two weeks? Forget that. I've barely had time to breathe all week, and the chances I get to myself are used either reading the fanfiction I'm following or working on VP, the new plot, or any other things that take priority over updating. Sorry. I'll try to regulate the updates, but I seriously can't promise ANYTHING! I hate school. Does anyone else feel the same?  
  
Realized I left this out last chapter. Oops. *grins*  
  
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Harry Potter. Duh. Otherwise I'd be rich-not to mention I wouldn't be American. You don't want to sue, because you'd only get a couple of t-shirts, jeans, socks, and a sketchbook.  
  
Anyway, read on and you can see the next part of my story. Hope you like it!  
  
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What seemed to be little particles of light streamed towards each other, then faded into the form of a human being. Blinking slightly, the woman looked around the office, sighed, and took a seat, resigning herself to waiting.  
  
Dumbledore walked in from the room behind his desk and looked startled when he saw a woman sitting patiently in one of his guest chairs. "Hello?"  
  
She cast an assessing cinnamon-brown gaze over him quickly, then met his eyes and smiled. "Hello. You must be Professor Dumbledore."  
  
The headmaster looked confused, and the woman sighed, standing up and slipping something into her pocket. "My name is Dylia Slypern. Except not. It's also Hermione Granger." Dumbledore shook his head slowly, not comprehending. With another sigh, she sat down again and motioned for the man to sit. "What you need to know, Albus, is that I am from the future and have traveled back in time to help you." She then began to explain from year 1 of her Hogwarts time up to year 7 and then the years after.  
  
".We were 19. Harry had already been turned into a werewolf, because Remus, the one we were trying to protect and keep safe during the last full moon before the final battle, lost control while Harry was still in human form. The moon rose sooner then any of us had expected, and it caught us all by surprise. Remus was mortified, but Harry managed to talk himself and Lupin through it.  
  
"The Dark Lord had been rising steadily in power for at least 5 years, just about 6. Nothing we had done had kept him from rising. We managed to keep most of the giants from his side, with the help of some of our friends, but many giants became neutral in the process. He had brought to his side Dementors, vampires, werewolves, and other 'dark' creatures.  
  
"It was during the final battle with him that everything changed. The battle was held here at Hogwarts. All the students had been evacuated before hand, so none of them would get hurt. All of the Order of the Phoenix and all that opposed Voldemort joined forces. We were going to vanquish him, or die trying.  
  
"The battle started out much as the others did, simply curses and hexes thrown back and forth, with no serious consequences. We were making our way to Voldemort. Just as we were nearing, I got grabbed by a vampire." Her eyes closed. "They-Harry and Ron-turned to come back and get me, but I yelled at them to go on. The vampire bit me, and would've left me to die if it weren't for Draco. He was passing by then and restrained the vampire, slit its wrist, and dripped the blood into my mouth. It was the only way he could think of to save me. I don't hold what I am now against him."  
  
When her eyes opened again, they flashed an angry red for a moment before fading back to their brown color. "As this was happening to me, Harry and Ron were still moving on. They neared the Dark Lord himself, and the Death Eaters started firing Avada Kedavra like there was no tomorrow. Ron's twin brothers, the two pranksters Fred and George, threw themselves in the way of the curses, acting as human shields for as long as they could before falling.  
  
"Ron freaked out. He started cursing the Death Eaters back, in such a rage he didn't seem to know what he was doing. He wiped out most of the Death Eater group all by himself, leaving Harry a clear path to the Dark Lord. He later ended up in St. Mungos, unable to believe his brothers died and that he killed so many people. Harry used the one curse I had found buried deep in the library one year ago, the only spell we believed would be affective against Voldemort. It worked. Voldemort's soul was torn out and crushed. He won't be coming back."  
  
(A/N: Sorry all you Ron fans! I had to find something that could've been a result of the 'war', but I didn't want to make a repeat and have him be a werewolf or a vamp, and I couldn't think of anything else.. So I made an idea that could make him all upset/insane. And I do like Fred and George!)  
  
There was a silence for a few minutes-Hermione's contemplative, Dumbledore's a mixture of awe and fear. After a short pause, Hermione's head turned to look at the older man. "Don't worry Dumbledore-your older self thought of that too. Or maybe he just remembered; I don't know. However he did it, he gave me this."  
  
She reached into her robes and withdrew the long dagger, watching with a faintly amused grin as he looked at it. "If I cause a small cut on myself with this, and drink the blood from myself, I won't have the bloodlust for any students. I might need a chicken or two from your Gamekeeper occasionally, however."  
  
Dumbledore examined the dagger without actually taking it from her grip, turned to the woman, and smiled. "So what do you teach Dylia Slypern?" "Potions, sir. I trained for several years to become a Potion Mistress." The man rose with a smile and extended a hand to the 21 year old. She took it with a grin, sharp canines glittering faintly, and shook it firmly. She Apparated to the edge of the boundaries, then started to run towards the castle, at a pace almost impossible. Dumbledore, back in his office, stared at the place she had been standing, shook his head in amusement, and headed down towards the Great Hall.  
  
By the time she returned to the castle doors, the carriages were pulling away from the entrance and the last student had just entered through the doors into the Great Hall. Smirking lightly, she slipped inside and faded into the shadows of the Entrance Hall, waiting. A few minutes later, a younger version of Professor McGonagall passed, followed by a large collection of first year students. Hermione continued to wait in the shadows of the Entrance Hall, flicking her wand slightly to cause her clothes to change to all black. She flicked her wand once more, a heavy robe falling onto her shoulders, billowing out whenever she took a step. She smirked again and waited five more minutes before forcing the doors open and stalking through, a sneer on her face.  
  
~~~(back track a few minutes)~~~  
  
Dumbledore smiled down at the students once all the first years had been sorted and the hat removed.  
  
"Now, I'm sure you're all hungry, so a final word: Potions!" He then sat down, ignoring the glances directed towards the empty chair to his left, normally occupied by the sweet Potions teacher, Professor Parly. The old wizard counted softly under his breath, watching the doors.  
  
"Three, two, one."  
  
Right on cue, the doors slammed open. A tall, pale woman stalked through, black robes billowing out behind her. She waved one hand slightly; the doors shut themselves again. Shoulder-length brown hair, streaked with a dark red, flowed behind her. Cinnamon-brown eyes scanned the Great Hall, a nasty sneer on her face. Despite the sneer, none of her teeth showed. The clothes underneath her billowing cloak were pure black, revealing pale skin only around her neck and the last inch or so of finger that was visible, not covered by the elbow-length leather gloves. She halted in the middle of the Hall, dark boots clicking softly. She raised an eyebrow and looked around the room, then up at Dumbledore.  
  
"Is this it Albus? I expected much more." The old man smiled.  
  
"No, this is it Dylia. You might find a few surprises in this group though. Students, meet Professor Dylia Slypern. She is a Potions Mistress, and our Potions teacher. I'm sure that you will all treat her with the respect she deserves. Dylia, if you will.?" The woman chuckled harshly, the pale skin standing out against all the black.  
  
"I have nothing more to say right now." With a faint glint of teeth, she made her way to the Head Table, taking the seat next to Dumbledore, where she fell into conversation with him quickly, motioning rapidly with her hands. The Hall slowly began to talk again, turning back to their own dinners.  
  
Hermione looked down at her plate and pushed it away with a faintly queasy look on her face, pulling her goblet forward instead. She leaned down and whispered a soft spell, then brought the cup to her lips, taking a deep sip. The deep red liquid flowed past her lips and she sighed softly, though she was careful not to let any drip. She placed the goblet back down, now empty, and spoke softly to Dumbledore. With faint nods to the other teachers, she swept from the room out one of the side doors, heading down to the dungeons.  
  
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A/N: Can you tell I gave up trying to use italics and bolds and stuffs in my a/n? Yeah. Didn't work, so I didn't even bother this time. *yawns* I'm tired. Sorry.  
  
I'm not actually using a beta-reader. I just realized this, because I was talking to Krystal and she brought up betas. Therefore, any mistakes are mine and mine alone. (that and my computers. It should really be able to pick up more then spelling mistakes and grammar mistakes. Can't they make one that finds plot holes too? -even though I don't have a plot, so there's no holes, but still.--)  
  
Anyway, there's snow here, and despite it being really late, I feel the need to go look at the snow before I sleep.  
  
Review please, even if you hate the story. *shrugs* Even a flame says you cared enough to give me the 'time of day'. Can't wait to see how you liked it!! =D 


	3. Chapter 3: A visit?

A/N: Look! I'm being nice and giving you 7 pages of story because I'm putting this on hiatus until I finish writing the story for my Damon's Challenge (Damon Rhodes) plot that I have all written. I'm on the back page of my plot sheet, and on page 14 of the story—all in my tiny writing—but it should be done by the end of this school year (ends June 2004), so… *grins* I'll probably be done sooner, but this is just a warning that it might be a while.

I was looking at my chapters and realized that I hadn't put in ANY review responses like I'd been planning, so… I'm putting one all the responses at the bottom of this chapter, so you can read them if you want.

The reason that my Damon's Challenge is being worked on before this one is because I really have no idea where this story is going. I'm not even sure if it will be HG/SS or HG/RL, though probably one of those, but I'm thinking HG/SS, seeing as she's where Sev got his inspiration and all (according to me. =D).

DISCLAIMER: Anything you recognize is not mine.

Still no beta, just because I'm lazy and don't feel like sending it out to anyone. I tend to read over my own work, so I think I've caught most of the mistakes. If you see one, point it out to me, don't be shy.

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The students all watched the Head Table the next morning, but were surprised to notice the empty Potions Professor's chair. A few minutes later, however, as last students began to trickle in, having woken late, Slypern slipped in the side door, heavy cloak hood up. The gloves had been changed to full gloves, hiding the pale fingers that had been there the night before. A dark turtleneck sweater was being worn under the robes and cloak, hiding the pale skin of her neck. Several students raised their eyebrows and broke into a speculative conversation, but the woman ignored them. The Defense teacher, Professor Romulus Lupin, pulled out the chair for her. The faint glint of teeth marked a smile from the shadows of her hood as she thanked him quietly, sitting down in her chair. Romulus leaned over and began a discussion with her, seeming quite interested. 

  
^^^

Remus Lupin was poked continuously in the side by James Potter, who was looking up at the two talking Professors at the Head Table. The sandy haired boy was able to ignore the poking for a few seconds, until the other black haired boy joined their mutual friend. Remus snapped.

"What??!?!" The two grinned, having gotten their reaction.

"Why's your brother looking so interested Remy? The only time I've ever seen him so interested in anything is during his classes." Remus glanced up at his older brother.

"Dunno. Now can I get back to my breakfast?" Peter Pettigrew peered over the table at the other three, grinning.

"Don't tell James, but Lily's on her way over here." James Potter instantly stopped poking his friend, returning to eating his dinner calmly. Lily Evans took the seat next to Peter, glancing at James with a raised eyebrow, then at the harried-looking Remus. She spared a glance to the Head Table and grinned.

"Are they pestering you for knowledge Remus?" The boy shook his head wearily.

"Honestly, just because he's my brother doesn't mean I know everything about what he thinks." Sirius grinned.

"But you should! Will you ask him after Defense tomorrow? We have Potions after it, remember?" The werewolf frowned slightly.

"Well…" James looked up. 

"Aww, c'mon Remy, we're just interested." The boy sighed.

"Oh, all right. But you all have to leave when I do." They nodded seriously. With a sigh, Remus finished his breakfast and allowed himself to be pulled out of the room.

^^^

Romulus looked up from his discussion on vampire habits and watched the four boys and one girl leave, grinning. He turned back to Hermione. (A/N: I'm going to call her Hermione, even though people here call her Dylia, ok? She's Dylia when being spoken to/about by someone else. Oh, and the professor's all know she's a vampire. They were told last night.)

"You want to watch those five Dylia. One of them's my brother, and he's a good sort, but together they make the Marauders, a group of pranksters. The girl, Lily Evans, is Head Girl and won't do you much harm, but James Potter, Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, and Remus won't hesitate in pranking you." The vampire's fangs glinted slightly as she smiled, as the Hall was empting.

"I will, thank you. Oh, and Romulus—right now I'd prefer if you don't tell your brother what I am. He's going to ask you—the others wanted to know why you were looking so interested. Apparently you never look that interested unless in your Defense class." Romulus chuckled and tapped his ear with a grin.

"Wish I had that hearing. I'd be able to control my classes a little better." Chuckling, Hermione rose with another smile.

"I'll talk to you more at lunch Romulus—I need to go form a lesson plan for tomorrow." The older Lupin grinned and rose as well.

"I need to prepare as well. And please, call me Rom." Hermione nodded and they left the Hall together, chatting lightly.

(A/N: Just so you know—the classes in the past don't start until the second day they're at Hogwarts. –the night they arrive doesn't count.—If you see a part in the above where it says that 'today' is when the classes start, ignore it. I had to change it for the next part, and I might not have gotten it all. Classes start 'tomorrow'.)

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Harry Potter stood talking quietly with Draco Malfoy as they waited for Dumbledore to arrive in the Great Hall so they could take the Trailon, the device that would take the first visitor, Harry, back to his parent's 7th year so he could check on Hermione. Draco looked at Harry with faint worry in his eyes.

"You'll be ok? Your parents…" Harry smiled grimly.

"I know I can't change anything. We just have to hope my appearance has changed enough that no one compares me to him." Dumbledore, entering the room, caught the last sentence and smiled slightly.

"You don't look anything like James now, Harry. You'll be fine." It was true—Harry had grown his hair out after the war two years ago, and it now reached below his shoulders, tied back with a thin leather tie. A few grey strands had begun to appear, from stress and transformations. The scar had faded when Voldemort died, now just a thin white mark, hardly visible. He had gotten his eyes magically corrected after his glasses were taken from him and smashed, making it hard for him to fight during one of the earlier battles, leaving his clear emerald eyes free of the black eyeglasses. He was a little paler, a side affect of the pain from the transformations. He appeared faintly tired, but didn't say anything. Albus smiled and rested a hand on the man's shoulder.

"You'll be fine. And Harry—take the chance to see your parents as carefree 17 year olds." The old wizard smiled at his young pupil, who smiled back. Draco coughed lightly off to the side, grinning faintly.

"You might want to appear in Hermione's office, Cobra—the Great Hall probably has some people in it right now." Harry grinned at the blond man.

"Yeah, sure, whatever Dragon. Just because I saved the bloody world doesn't mean I don't know what I'm doing." At the raised eyebrow, he flushed faintly.

"At least… mostly…" Albus chuckled and handed Harry a long green stone.

"Just think of the Potions Professor's office and 1977." Harry smiled, closed his eyes, and shimmered out of place. The two other men stood there for a moment, then Draco turned to Albus with a grin.

"Alright oldie, I guess I have to help you to your office now, hmm?" Dumbledore's blue eyes twinkled.

"Oldie? I'm more spry then you, young one." Draco shook his head slightly.

"Whatever you want to believe Headmaster. Just as long as Fawkes doesn't burn my hand this time." The two chuckled as Draco helped Albus out of the Great Hall, chatting softly.

  
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Harry shimmered into view in the dungeon office of the Potions teacher, the same room for all Potions professors. He glanced around and noticed the ventilation shaft that would occasionally let sunlight through into the dungeon was blocked with a free hanging thick black curtain. He grinned slightly.

"Hermione's office… let's see." He glanced over at the wizarding clock on the wall and grinned.

"Still at breakfast. All right then. Let's see how awake the school is, hmm?" A soft hiss came from his arm and a sleek black snake stuck his head out of the robe sleeve, the triangular hood closed. The cobra blinked up at Harry.

~Talking to yourssself isss one of the firssst sssignsss of madnessssss you know.~ Harry made a face at the snake.

~No one asssked you Lairan. Go back to sssleep. I'll let you know if I need you.~ The cobra chuckled softly and tucked his head back into the sleeve, shifting his position. The coils wound a little more around Harry's shoulders, hidden by the robe. Shaking his head slightly, the werewolf headed to the Great Hall, whistling softly.

~^~^~^~^~^~

Hermione leaned back slightly in her chair, wearing the same type of dark outfit as the day before. She pushed the empty goblet aside, grinning slightly. If the future Albus was true to his word, someone should be showing up today. She looked up, cinnamon-brown focusing on the doors as she tilted her head slightly. She chuckled suddenly, catching Romulus's attention. He glanced at her.

"What?" She shook her head and grinned.

"Harry's coming. He always whistles that tune." Despite how the Defense teacher strained his ears, he couldn't hear a whistle over the chatter in the Hall. There was a faint flash of white in the shadows caused by the hood—a smile—as Hermione listened to the whistling change to a hissing—obviously Lairan was here too. Only to be expected, of course. She glanced at Dumbledore, who was watching her, and nodded slightly. The old man smiled and returned to his breakfast. 

The doors opened softly and faintly, unnoticed by most of the students. A tall and slightly pale man slipped through, closing the door just as softly behind him. His feet made no sound to anyone but the vampire's ears as he made his way through the shadows of the Hall against the wall, though his green eyes met Hermione's brown in a greeting. Two of her gloved fingers flicked towards him in an ironic salute, though her hand didn't leave its place on the table. Shaking his head slightly, the man continued his way around the Great Hall until he reached the wall parallel to the space between the Head Table and the House Tables. Something long and dark dropped out of his sleeve, landing almost silently on the ground. The snake slithered slowly across the stone with hardly a rustle, its sound drowned out by the chattering students. 

It was noticed by the students, however, the minute the cobra flared its huge black and red hood, head rising up about a foot off the ground as it hissed at them, silvery-white eyes staring around the Hall. The man was unnoticed in the sudden commotion as he returned to the doors, though he didn't leave. None of the teachers made any movement after a glance to the un-concerned looking Dumbledore. The students were frozen in place, unable to leave their tables as the deadly cobra swayed back and forth, staring at the children. The silvery-white gaze landed on the Gryffindor table and, with another hiss, he began to slither towards the 7th years there, unwavering gaze focused on the sandy-haired tired-looking boy. The boy watched, terrified, as it grew ever closer. His two black-haired friends moved to stand in front of him, staring with a trembling sort of fear at the cobra that continued to stare past them at the other.  As they reached for their wands, however, there was another hissing from the area of the doors. Several heads snapped around to stare at the man that pushed himself up out of the shadows, emitting the hissing sounds. The cobra's stare slowly turned from the sandy-haired boy to the dark-haired man who was speaking in the Parseltongue, silvery-white meeting emerald green. Slowly, ever so slowly, the snake's head lowered, hood folding, until the cobra was lying submissively on the stone floor. The dark man strode forward quickly, allowing the cobra to wind around his arm and around his shoulders. Green eyes turned to look at the two standing 7th year Gryffindors, one eyebrow raised. His voice had a slight undertone of a hiss and a growl, though it was hard to hear. Otherwise the voice was quite pleasant.

"That was very brave of you. Lairan was searching for something, and thought he'd found it. I believe he was mistaken, though of course, I'm naught but an unintelligent human-" He smirked slightly. "-in his eyes. Your names?" The slightly shorter boy, with messy black hair, swallowed faintly and spoke.

"James Potter, Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin, sir…" The man smiled at them calmly, though there was a faint flash of sadness in his eyes for a second.

"Very good. Please, return to your dinner. My apologies if Lairan startled you." He turned and headed to the Head Table, seemingly oblivious of all the stares being directed at him—or at the snake still wound about his shoulders. James and Sirius exchanged looks before lowering down into their chairs as Lily rested a protective and supporting hand on the shaking Remus. The plainly dressed man, wearing dark pants and a deep blue shirt under the robe, reached the table and bowed slightly to Dumbledore, from the waist up. He glanced up quickly.

"I beg your pardon for interrupting your meal, sir, but I just arrived and Lairan was confused with the traveling we did. I'm afraid he doesn't mix well with Portkeys. Be that as it may-" He was cut off from a snort on the Headmaster's left side. Cinnamon colored eyes stared out of the dark hood at the man making his apologies from the Potions Professor's seat. Romulus glanced at her, surprised, but Hermione ignored him, speaking instead to the man.

"Harry, you dunderhead. You knew Lairan doesn't travel well; you just wanted the attention." Harry spread his hands, grinning faintly at the woman.

"Don't look at me, I just follow orders. Everyone else was the one who planned this." Teeth glinted as she smirked slightly under the hood.

"With Ferret in the lead, I suppose. Why is it you always listen to him about how to do something?" She paused, then flinched as he opened his mouth.

"On second thought, I don't want to know. I told you where my office was, didn't I?" Harry nodded.

"Wait for me there, then, before young Mr. Rarne suffers a heart failure." Several Ravenclaws turned to look at their new first year, who was staring in open fear at the snake with an awful gray color in his skin. Harry snickered softly as he turned and left the Hall. She glared at the door, then turned to Dumbledore.

"Excuse me Headmaster—I need to go deal with Harry. I thought he'd been told not to cause a distraction, but apparently it went in one ear and out the other." Albus chuckled heartily, smiling.

"Very well Dylia—but don't hurt him too hard. It was quite interesting to watch." She snorted again and left the room, leaving a stunned Hall behind. Dumbledore peered out at the students over his glasses.

"Well? Eat up! You're first classes are today!" They returned to their meals, beginning conversations about the spectacle they witnessed that day. Lily looked concernedly at Remus.

"Rem? You ok?" The boy shook his head as if to clear it, obviously concentrating elsewhere. 

"What? Oh, yeah, yeah… Did you notice anything odd about Professor Slypern's friend?" Sirius answered, sarcastically.

"You mean aside from the fact he speaks Parseltongue and has a deadly cobra that he treats like a regular person would treat a cat? No, nothing at all." Lily scowled at the earlobe-length haired boy angrily.

"That's quite enough of that Mister Black. It wasn't you the cobra was focusing on…" James rested a hand on hers, lightly.

"Calm down Lily. He was just being himself. Remus? You'll be ok in classes, or do you want us to take you to the Hospital Wing?" Remus shook his head, looking up at his friends.

"No, I'm fine. C'mon, we'd better go. Pete? You coming?" Peter Pettigrew stood quickly, grabbing his bags, and smiled.

"Of course. Lead on, fearless friend." Chuckling faintly, the four made their way to their first class—Transfiguration, and then DADA after it.

~^~^~^~^~^~^~

A/N: End of chapter! I think it went pretty well, didn't you? *hopes* Let me know what you liked, what you hated, whatever. Just review!

Review Responses (I'm sure all of you were dying for me to get this to you, weren't you? I know you were, it's not use hiding it!):

Chapter 1:

Lord Elrond of Hogwarts: Thanks for your review Tara! Yeah, I like the Trio 'mutated', as Harry so wonderfully put it. =D

Romm: A good start, yes… I'm just as curious as you to find out what will happen. Doesn't say much for the non-existent plot in this story, does it? lol, but we all love me anyway, because that's simply how I am. =D

Kyra Invictus Black: To digress, love your screenname. *grins* Can I borrow Kyra for random stories/roleplays I do? I love that name now. Yes… vampires, time travel, HG/SS… several of my favorites things in one story. Now if only I could find that plot bunny that refuses to be made…

Miss Dark Person: Thanks for your review! Glad you like Hermione as a vampire. I'm trying to show her as a vampire—I think it would've changed her attitude a little. (or… well, a lot…)

Slytherinsela: Hey, thanks for reviewing! Yeah, I really see Remus as the 'werewolf standard', at least if I write a werewolf… I like the bickering friendship between Harry and Draco too—they wouldn't just stop and become friends, so I've incorporated it into their relationship. (on a friendly basis only, get your minds out of the gutter!)

Sailor Grape: My favorite Harry/Draco writer! Glad you reviewed! *hugs* Yeah. I have no plot for this story, so everything I think of just tends to come out all at once.

Silv3r4ng3l: Yay! Singapore-buddy! (that's your new name, by the way. =D) You reviewed! Did you see my update? It's beautiful. Hmm… I'd show you a picture of the knife/dagger, except when I tried to sketch it, it turned out really bad… if you've ever read Tamora Pierce's Protector of the Small series (with Keladry of Mindelan), Kel uses a glaive, which has Yamani steel… that's the sort of steel I was thinking of. *shrugs* Just for reference, if you feel the need to find a better description of the steel. I guess the description didn't fit in a way… I dunno, I thought it was ok. Hence the reason there's no change. *snorts* Purpose? You mean she needs a purpose in going back in time? I guess it's just to watch over the past and make sure things happen the way they're supposed to… plus, if it's the past, then Dumbledore knows she needs to go back there. Remember, she did tell him she was Hermione Granger. I see time travel as something you have to do, and that everything you do has, essentially, already happened in your own time. I don't see it as you go back in time and have to be careful about not changing anything, because you were meant to be there and meant to do the things that might change something. Does that make any sense? *shudders* James, Sirius, or Pettigrew with Hermione would just be… bad. *eeps!* No! You must touch TBT!!!! I, as your beta, command you too!! *begs*

Now for chapter 2's reviews! And sorry my chapter 1's took so long—I forgot to do it in the chapter 2.:

Silv3r4ng3l: Hello again! I know you've told me, and I've tried it… just didn't work, and I don't feel like playing with it, so there will probably be no italics/bolds unless it works all by itself. *shrugs* I'll just use signs and stuff, like ~ or {.

Romm: I'm sure if you try to think about who was who's inspiration, and you take my time travel theory (see the response to silv3r4ng3l from chapter 1's reviews), then it will simply give you a big headache. Because it would be Sev as inspiration to Hermione, who was inspiration to Sev before he was potions, who was inspiration to… etc. Headache material.

Lord Elrond of Hogwarts: I know you're mad at me for killing Fred and George. People at my school are too. 0_o; I couldn't think of another way for Harry to be a werewolf, sorry! And I can't bring Fred and George back—doesn't work that way. *scoffs* Fanfictionitus was sooooooooo created by me. I was, in case you forgot, the one who got you addicted.

Jenny: Thanks for you review, glad you thought it was cool!

Damon Rhodes: lol, this one won't be slash. I can't write fem-slash for my life, plus I think fem-slash is disgusting. And as Hermione's the main charrie… Yes, the challenge is being worked on! That's why this one's going on hold. *grins*

That's it for my review responses! Thanks for reading my story!

~mednar


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